Award winning journalist and wellbeing expert Rosie Green on the small lifestyle tweak that’s given her a big wellbeing boost.

I’m all about equipping my readers to live their best life, encouraging them to grab every opportunity and embrace every challenge. So FitFlop’s MO of using shoes to support those goals from the ground up has always really resonated. Their lightweight, biomechanically engineered footwear is all about delivering comfort without ever compromising on style.

FitFlop and I both agree that one easy way of boosting physical health and mental wellbeing is walking.

Like tennis players’ torsos and olives, walking is something I’ve come to appreciate later in life.

So I’m all over their new challenge.

FitFlop want you (and me) to walk an extra one-mile a day.

Don’t be daunted (I was). Apparently it’s only 2000 steps.

How to achieve it? Snatch a quick stroll at lunchtime, stride to the store rather than drive, walk to work or walk part way to work. Use your feet, not your wheels, to do the school drop off.

I did.

And here are 10 reasons why I love walking…

ONE

I get my best ideas when walking. A Stanford University study in 2014 says people who walked more were consistently more creative than those that were just sitting.

TWO

There’s usually minimal chance of injury. Less than running. A lot less than skydiving.

THREE

Walking can make you feel (a lot) better. Hippocrates famously said ‘walking is the best medicine.’ For me, it’s also the best hangover cure.

FOUR

You can get a healthy glow. There’s a reason Jane Austen heroines always had winning flushed cheeks and it’s because they were always romping across moors.

FIVE

It’s free.

SIX

It requires no expensive equipment.

SEVEN

It de-stresses.* Exercise endorphins have been linked to lower cortisol levels. *Unless you are wearing uncomfortable shoes. In which case the opposite is true.

EIGHT

The body benefits appear to be multiple. My doctor tells me walking can be good for my bone strength. And could lower my blood pressure.

NINE

It gets you from A to B without having to get too close to any other human being.

TEN

Unless you are running or cycling or it’s 100 degrees, you generally look pretty passable when you reach your destination.